Oland Spey Shrimp by Morten Oland

The fly is weighted with tungsten. Cut off a strip of tungsten plate and tie it in under the hook shank. In order to stabilise the fly, it’s important that all the weighting comes under the shank

Select a Spey hackle to fit the actual hook size. The feather strands should be long because that will contribute to the lifelike appearance in the water. But if they are too long, they will get tangled when you use the fly. The Spey hackle should be tied in the middle of the hook bend, making tight turns with the hackle. Then make turns with the tying thread over the hackle. This will increase the strength and durability of the fly

Tie in four white fluoro fibre hanks. Strip off the feather strands from two Spey hackles, except for the tip of the hackles. Tie in the hackle stems so that they point to each side, respectively. The points should be trimmed to obtain equal length of the shrimp’s antennae. Add a relatively thick layer of dubbing on the backward 6mm of the hook shank. It’s important to bear in mind that the basic profile of the shrimp is formed by correctly placed dubbing

Tie in two fly eyes so that they stick out a couple of mm from the hook bend. Then tie in a 0.16 mono line under the hook shank, which will later be used as ribbing

Tie in two Spey hackles onto the thick part of the shank. Then add a layer of dubbing towards the hook eye. Ensure that you get a conical profile, if this is not the case it will be difficult to succeed in making the fly look like a shrimp

Wind the two spey hackles evenly around the conical body. Dress the dubbing and feather strands with a piece of velcro or a tiny brush. This will increase the volume of the material

Cut a piece of transparent Flexibody to obtain a conical profile and pull it off the carton. 

Tie in the narrow end at the hook eye to overlap the eye. The Flexibody, which will constitute the shrimp’s back shield, is tied in with the ribbing. It’s very important how the ribbing is wound. Start with relatively large turns that become smaller the closer you get to the hook eye, a total of 10 turns. A shrimp fly that is tied with 3-4 equally large turns will never look like a real shrimp!

Trim the Flexibody that extends from the hook bend so that it becomes maximum 15 mm longer than the hook. The Flexibody is cut as a profile from the end towards the eyes

As a final touch, add a layer of epoxy over the carapace (back shield) of the shrimp. This makes the carapace more lifelike and strengthens the fly. Epoxy may be omitted if you don’t want to use it. If you like a more resplendent fly you may mix in some mica in the epoxy. I myself prefer the natural version. Don’t forget that the part of the Flexibody that lies over the hook eye is only there to prevent epoxy from filling up the hook eye. When the epoxy has dried you should remove it. It will only make the fly act awkwardly in the water

The result is an extraordinary shrimp imitation that is very attractive to fish and fishermen alike. White and grey are the colours I prefer for sea trout along the coast, but high quality spey hackle can be found in many colours. What about an orange shrimp imitation in your box the next time you go for some nice salmon? There are many possibilities with this pattern